There's no snow in bayou country, and no reindeer with a bright red nose to guide Papa Noel through the Louisiana fog on Christmas Eve. But with his toy-filled sack, Papa Noel does have a team of alligators to pull his trusty pirogue. And he does have another vaguely familiar helper--not Rudolph, but Nicolette, a rare white 'gator with glowing green eyes to guide his little boat through the cypress swamps to the cabins of good little Cajuns.

But this fog is something else again, too thick for even Nicolette's magical eyes to penetrate. Papa Noel encourages his coursers --"On, Etienne, Emille, Rommy and Renee, Alcee' and Alphonse, Francois and Fabienne"--but even with Nicolette in the lead the 'gators continue to scrape their bellies on the cypress knees. Papa Noel begins to worry.

But in a novel turn on the tale, Papa gets some help from the very ones he wants to serve. "Wh-what's dat?" Etienne the alligator gasps. Up ahead they see a bright glow through the fog. It has to be beacon bonfires built by the Cajun families themselves.

"Them mens went out and chopped them some willow logs and gathered some reeds. They worked beaucoup hours to make a string of bonfires along that levee. I shoulda figured them Cajuns would know what to do." Papa Noel said. "You see, Cajuns is some kinda smart, yeah!"

It's a Joyeaux Noel to y'all and to y'all a good night for another rescued Christmas in Terri Dunham's The Legend of Papa Noel: A Cajun Christmas Story (Legend Series). Although there are no source notes that peg this tale to an authentic Louisiana legend, Dunham's selective use of Cajunisms (listed in a handy glossary in the front of the book) sets the stage for a colorful ethnic version of the familiar lost Santa story. Illustrator Laura Knorr builds in plenty of text-extending details, especially the rascally pet raccoon who accompanies Papa Noel and swipes his milk and cookies along the delivery route. In all, appealing grinning 'gators and a jolly blue-jeaned and suspendered Papa Noel add up to a fun read with a soupcon of Cajun seasoning for the holiday season.

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Retired after 32+ years as an elementary librarian, I really miss the joy of bringing together the right book with the right reader at the right time. Loving both kids and books equally as I do, perhaps helping children and the adults who care about them find good books through this blog is the next best thing to being there.
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